Nature, Red in Tooth and Paw

I walked into a nature documentary while I was out with my dog this morning. I'd just bagged Charlie's poop and we were continuing on our perambulation when he bounded towards a squirrel. He doesn't actually chase squirrels much anymore--I think he decided that since he never catches them it's not worth the effort--but perhaps this one looked like a likely candidate for chasing. There was something of the victim about it.

Just as he broke towards the squirrel a massive bird swooped down to grab it in its talons. But it missed. Charlie had saved the squirrel, for by running towards it he startled the squirrel towards the safety of a nearby tree. The hawk's talons closed around empty air.

Or course Charlie was immediately surprised by the bird. He instantly forgot about the squirrel and barked at the hawk, which swooped up and landed on a high branch, cursing its luck. It was this close to breakfast and that stupid dog had ruined things.

To be honest, I was a little disappointed, too. I would like to have seen that hawk lift its prey off the ground and flap away with it. Maybe tomorrow.

John, Brit slang question. Sharon Osborne recently used the phrase "hit with a [bad word] ugly stick." I was under the impression that "hit with an ugly stick" was a rural American colloquialism. Is it also common in Britain?